Survival Training Astronauts Look Like Desert Island Madmen

The six haggard dudes you see here aren't extras from Lawrence of Arabia, but intrepid, tough as hell astronauts from the Mercury 6 program. The 1960s squad attended survival training school in Nevada to prepare for a remote crash landing.

Those clothes they're wearing? Partially fashioned from parachutes. Those beards? Awesome. Those faces? The looks of men prepared to be the first human in space. Maybe John Glenn, third from the right, is the only one smiling because he knows he's going to be the history-making hero. I'm going to start dressing like this every day. You know, as a tribute. To space. [In Focus]